Thursday, May 14, 2009

Michelle Garcia, owner of Bleeding Heart Bakery and the recently opened Smash Cake, ordered 20 children's aprons from me for Smash Cake a few weeks ago (my biggest order to date had been for 8 aprons). I felt confident that I could complete the order in the time that I had, but there were a few complications. The fabric I wanted was not available, and the replacement fabric that I wanted (and that had been approved by Michelle) was also not available. Plan B! The replacement fabric was available in a smaller print, and I figured it would work so I ordered it. All of this back and forth cut about a week out of my timeframe so I decided to make some changes to the design. Originally I thought I would use 1 fabric for all of the parts. But with the fabric arriving on a Monday and the aprons due on that Friday, I decided to use a contrasting fabric for the bib liner and ties, as I usually do.

I finished the bib liners, ties, and neckstraps in advance of the skull fabric (at right) arriving.

I meticulously tracked my time to see how much I could shave off the usual 1 hour per apron I spend when I work on a multiple order. I was pleased to discover that I got that time down to 45 minutes.

I especially like the back view where you can see the 3 contrasting fabrics.

Quality control and final folding took 30 minutes. I was surprised by how small the finished ordered looked after spending 16 hours on it! I was out the door by 1:30 on the day they were due, just enough time to get the aprons to Smash Cake AND make a stop at Bleeding Heart for the best cupcake I have ever had - rhubarb with a wonderful whipped strawberry frosting - yum!

Interior of Smash Cake, a bakery/coffee-shop/children's birthday party venue in Chicago.

The exterior of Smash Cake is great. The CAKE letters are especially fantastic. I thought they looked reclaimed, but Michelle told me she had them made for the shop.

I will be selling my aprons at the Smash Cake grand opening on Saturday, May 30th. (2961 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago) The event starts at 2 and goes until 6. I am working on child/adult sets, many made from various skull fabrics. I'm really looking forward to being part of this event. It all started with an ad that Michelle posted on Craigslist for crafters to sell items in her bakery, which led to the reality show aprons, then the order of 20 aprons – who knows what might happen next!